Rain? Who cares? It’s dodgeball, baby!

It was coming from the lower gym the kids call The Cage. For the next two weeks, listen closely. You’ll here the noises again as the brackets wind down and the teams head for the 2011 championship.

Now you’re probably asking, “Championship of what?”

Dodgeball, baby!

With 16 coed teams formed, the competition started Friday and the release has been welcome, especially since dodgeball is played indoors — out of this non-stop rain.

Started in 2008, the Blue Devil dodgeball crown is taken seriously.

Soccer star Alex Vivona is this year’s tourney director and he’s getting good help from folks like Student Body President Spencer Bowen.

Remember the movie “Dodgeball: a True Underdog Story?” Ben Stiller and Vince Vaughn starred, taking to heart the sport in an effort to earn enough money to save their failing Las Vegas gym. In the Davis version of dodgeball, there are no big prizes … just an opportunity to let it all out — and make up some strange team names.

“I think it’s a great way to let out some aggression during a tiresome school day,” Bowen believes.”But despite its violent nature, I think dodgeball’s best quality is its ability to bring people together. It’s just an old-school lunchtime activity that gives students another way to connect to their school and their campus.”

Lunchtime? Like in handing your opponent his or her lunch?

The Blue Devil rules mirror what Stiller and Vaughn played by in their 2004 film:

Teams start out six-on-six with six balls per court. If a player is hit, out he or she goes. If a thrown ball is caught, out goes the the thrower, and the catching team gets another player back in. Davis students are playing best-of-five series with three different games going on simultaneously.

Visitors beware. There is no place from which to observe, unless a spectator doesn’t mind getting drilled without actually entering the tournament.

While the droplets continue to fall outside, inside at DHS it’s raining dodgeballs. And sometime next week, there will be a No. 1 team crowned. How far can it be from dodgeball becoming an official varsity sport in the Delta Valley Conference?

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David Ruff, left, and Michael Johnson grab for a ball during a dodgeball game on Monday at Davis High. Sue Cockrell/Enterprise photo

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Zane Lopez, left, and Duncan Sumner go on the offensive as Shane Lillya is in standby position during a dodgeball game on Monday at Davis High. Sue Cockrell/Enterprise photo